If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

CAT D Insurance help

Hi, hope someone can ease help my mind. My first post so please excuse me if I'm in the wrong section.

I have just put a deposit down on a ford focus that was cat d for some minor cosmetic damage to the rear nearside quarter panel. The damage was pretty minor but was cat d because of the previous owners policy. I was told by several people including my insurance company that the fact the car was a cat d was pretty insignificant and would not effect my policy with them as long as the car has a new MOT which it had last week. However today my insurance company have called me back (four days after first calling them) to tell me that the policy could not be honored because I have not sent them an engineers report.

My question is in two parts really. Firstly will an engineers report performed by the RAC be sufficient as when I asked my insurance company they said they did not mind who produces it as long as I get one. I need a straight yes the cars roadworthy or no the car isn't.

And secondly has anyone else had this trouble with insurance on a cat d car. I know of quite a few friends who have purchased cat d cars in the past without so much as a murmur from the insurance company as long as the MOT is there.

Some insurers will not insure cat D, some will, your challenge will happen if you ever need to claim, because the value of the car is significantly less than a non cat D car. As for engineers report, i would imagine an RAC inspection should be sufficient as it is a fairly in depth report, however i would advise you get the insureres to state very clearly what it needs, so that you do not waste money

dont worry im in the same situation, im planning to buy a cat d mini cooper, they said since im a existing customer i just have to provide a engineer report (VRD?) so i spoke to the dealer and he said the mechanic said its utter rubbish but they will do it for me since the insurer requires it, my insurer is lloyds tsb.

i rang directline and also churchill and they told me that they wont cover my car, just to get an idea as to what would happen in the future.
found it a bit odd since churchill infact underwrite lloyds.

im not sure whether i was wording it wrong or whether they thought it was a written off vehicle right now. i find it very confusing since ive never brought a cat d vehicle before! the trader also found it confusing but i assume its a new thing the insurers may need?

but il find out tomorrow whether the car has passed or not on this check thing, and il be able to fax certificate over to the insurer and they can then tell me whether they can insure me or not. bit **** if they cant though =(!

Hi, thanks for your reply quite interesting that the other insurers wouldn't touch the car. I didn't go for the car in the end but not for the want of trying from my end.

I booked the RAC to go out and look at the car to get the engineers report. The dealer canceled with the RAC three times. I was getting pretty p***ed off by this point but his reasons seemed plausible enough. Eventually the day before the forth test was due the trader called to say (completely out of the blue), that he thought me and my insurance company were putting him under too much pressure with this car and he was sending me my deposit back because someone else had offered him more money (I think he thought the car was going to fail or something). I was livered at first but its worked out for the best in the end.

The deposit showed up next day and I have brought another car from a bigger dealership that is as straight as they come and isn't causing me any sleepless nights.

Let me know how you get on with your car, I'm thinking of changing my insurance company after the hassle I had with them.

to be honest i think it might be a new inspection they are trying to introduce to cover the insurancers back, the dealer i may be buying the car from was more than willing to go ahead with the test since i needed it to be insured, he said it would be done today before 12pm so im waiting around to see what happens with it.. il go ahead and buy the car as long as the insurance goes through smoothly. the car was running smooth and the fact that it is cat d was concerning me but ive researched online and basically means the cost of repirs would be too much for the car so its written off.. hope i have no prioblems with it since im plannign to keep the car for a very very long while!

i picked my car up on friday, took a whole day almost, to sort stuff out. the engineer report was done and dusted with, engineer had stated he didnt know why the car ever was a cat d , after examining it though he said the damage was to the front end, looked as though the bonnet had been changed and maybe the bumper, id got a friend to look under the bonnet etc and everything seemed to be in working order, all original mini bits or so it seems. car is in working condition even hitting high speeds when tested on the motorway. hopefully i wont have any problems. slight hitch was insurance company hadnt recieved my first fax of the document but once they recieevd it the nice fella rang me back and we did the c.o.v on the insurance policy. only concern would be in the future if i plan to change insureres to geta cheaper quote but at the moment im happy so far!

Peugeot 207

Hello,

I bought a CAT d 57 plate peugeot 207, the place I bought it from said it was only light damage but I managed to contact the original owner who said the accident was pretty bad...I had it in for a warranty repair and Peugeot picked up on a few bits totalling £270 that had not been repaired after the accident.

Its been a real nightmare! My own fault for buying blindly really...now my biggest concern is insurance. My insurance company have told me they do not insure CAT D cars (i could have sworn I mentioned it when originally taking the quote 2 months back) so now what to do...is there any good insurance company's for CAT D cars? Also...how much do you expect the fee will be because they will not cover my car? They mentioned they would find out and get back to me. So sorry for all the questions!

Odd

it would appear that there is some confusion with Cat C and Cat D write off's.
Insurance companies do not seem to know the difference.

When i phoned the DVLA to ask the difference they told me that Cat C was the worst case of the 2 with an engineers report required before the car can legally go back on the road.

Cat D is purely cosmetic damage that is more than the value of the sum insured hence not worth the insurance companies time to fix. thus write it off.
Cat D does not require an engineers report to put the car back on the road.
I attach a link that was also quite helpful.